Happy Days Quilting

Sunday, 25 November 2012

I've finished the first corner of my pickle dish quilt, I cut up the freezer paper pattern from the centre, and used a quarter of the design to fit into the corner and happily it fits there very nicely!
The centre is now finished but the light isn't good enough for a photo.
I'm using the instagram app on my phone for this post, and I'm not very happy with the photos quality, but as time seems to get away from me most days before I can get a chance to blog, I thought this was better than nothing!
Happy sewing!

Monday, 8 October 2012

I'm back in the hexie business, I started this wallhanging last July, so I had to blow off the mothballs.
I have been sewing them for the last few weeks and have made very good progress (patting myself of my back).
Once it's sewn together I'm sticking it to some Kona White and then quilting around it, I'm thinking of doing something pictorial? it will be fun dreaming up a design.
Happy sewing!

Friday, 14 September 2012

Unfortunately I seem to have lost my way on this quilt, and it has turned into a UFO for the last few months, the rot set in when I had trouble with the water lilies that I planned to make, they were lovely but just too deep for this wall quilt, I now have a new plan to make them flatter.
I have been thinking a lot about the quilting for the water and have come up with a design that excites me and I hope to freemotion scales in gold thread onto the fish.
Once I have finished appliquéing the fish it will be ready for quilting and the lilies will be attached after the binding.
It will have to sit in the quilting queue for a bit then thou.

Just wandering did anyone think I must have gone off my rocker when you saw my last post, I am totally blaming sleep deprivation for my wordless Wednesday post on a Monday!

Monday, 27 August 2012

Been busy, I tried another filler in the oval, it's sits on top of two seam lines and the swirls don't hide them, so I have done a grid pattern to see if it works better, it definitely hides the seams but it's not as pretty, so I decided to leave both in and sew ovals to match them at either side.
I also started to sew in the straight line fillers, it was my first attempt and I will definitely be doing more of them in the future.
I hope you got some sewing time in today too.
Happy sewing!

I'm still not 100% happy with it, but it doesn't look as bad as I originally judged, its a connecting design so I'm going to stitch the next one in and either I will like it or be un picking two motifs instead of one.

This is how the design was marked out

The oval motif is designed on freezer paper and then ironed in place, I can then mark around it with a soluble pen, I won't mark the swirls in the centre.

This blue line is just to tell me to stop sewing.

Using a curved ruler, I marked the feathers spine, I keep the ruler in the same curve for both sides and use the measure markings for length placement in this case from 7 to 2 cm and then on the opposite side, flip the ruler over and measure from 2 to 7cm.

There is actually a blue line marked for both spines, but it so faint it not showing up in the pic.
Anyways that it, minimal marking means more time sewing.

Friday, 24 August 2012

I always make wall quilts, there have only been a few exceptions over the years, I think it's mostly a size thing, wall quilts are smaller, bed quilts are harder to freemotion due to their size and I love the quilting part of making a quilt the best, and there are only three beds in my house so in theory my hobby would be finished already if I made bed quilts even taking into account a summer and winter weight one, I know I could gift some quilts and I have but they take so long to make, only close members of my family have got lucky :)
There are loads of walls in my house thou and I could be seasonal too when I eventually fill them all, but the best thing about putting a quilt on the wall is the sheer enjoyment I get everyday from looking at them!
The following pics are from my lounge.
On the flying geese quilt the quilting only really shows up when I put the lights on in the evening, it's my favourite moment of the day!
Two posts in one day, I think I've got verbal diarrhoea!
Happy sewing! again

It also might be that wall quilts don't get touched or washed often, but that makes me sound OCD so Im sticking with the size thing theory!

Its not a keeper!
I thought this design would look better, but I'm not happy with it at all, its the feathers fault, they have no graceful plumes just stubby thumbs!
Will be spending time with my unpicker today.

Thursday, 23 August 2012

While happily sewing in the ditch this morning on my pickles, I was thinking about what it would be like to sew with a longarm, I always turn my quilts frequently so that they are facing the best way to sew out the designs, but on a longarm the quilt is loaded and its only moved forwards.

So I challenged myself not to turn my quilt as much, I was only freemotioning in the ditch (would definitely not feel comfortable trying this with feathers) and I was happy with how I managed, yes there were some wobbly moments but mostly I got the hang of it quite well.

The above photo is quite dark, but I hope you see what I'm getting at, usually I would turn the quilt so that it was facing me straight on, in the photo its at an angle, ok I know its baby steps but its still its a new skill learnt!

Wednesday, 22 August 2012

Idiot at work
Ive had a couple of mostly frustrating attempts on my design tablet so far, it takes me ages to find a brush setting that works (as I have no clue what are the best settings to use), like an idiot when I find a brush setting I like I dont right it down, so end up repeating the whole exercise of trial and error the next time I use it.
I just realised that I have again not written down any settings, Im such a doofus!

Anyways

This is the quilting motif that I plan to freemotion around the middle section, it is designed to be repeated and connect.

As I have left the design of this very late and have no way of using a light box to trace the design onto the quilt, I am going to make a freezer paper template for the oval and feather stem, iron the template onto the front of the quilt and then quilt around them and then freemotion the feathers, I could just iron on the template and then use a blue washable marker to transfer the design so will probably try out both methods to see which I like best.

Plea for help
If you are reading this post and use a design tablet yourself, this complete doofus would be ever so grateful for any hints and tips!
Happy sewing!

Sunday, 12 August 2012

Modern v traditional
I finished the top weeks ago, but have been too busy to post pics

Its a modern looking quilt and I have left loads of room for quilting

But I couldn't bring myself to quilt any modern quilting designs on it, when I say modern I mean straight lines minimalist types of quilting, don't get me wrong I do enjoy looking at it on other peoples quilts and do think it looks great and compliments the quilts very well.

But its not what calls to me when I think about quilting designs for my own quilts, I am always drawn and seek out traditional designs such as feathers and swirls etc.

I'm not sure how well the quilting will match the quilt when its finished, I have already quilted the centre design but have had to wait a few weeks to find a design that will compliment and carry the design out to the corners.

At the moment I'm pleased with how its coming along and will post pics of the progress soon.

Monday, 11 June 2012

I was compelled big time on the weekend to start a new applique quilt, my fish pond quilt has sunk not completely without a trace but I'm not sure where I want to go with it either, so a new applique project was needed.

Its not my own design but from a pattern I bought last year at a quilt show its by Anja Townrow

When I opened up the pattern when I got home thou I was really disappointed with the pattern sheet included as it has been so badly drawn, the patterns are drawn out on individual A3 sheets not a problem as I can tape them together but the lines marking where to attach each sheet don't align, and the flowers and stems were not symmetrical and are roughly drawn and not what I expected as the pattern was £8 so it went straight into a drawer, but when I saw the quilt up in this years quilt show and it looked so darn nice, I decided to give it another look.

Anyways I traced the good parts and have drawn my own symmetrical flowers and this is where I'm up to

The pieces of applique still need to be shaped, I use the starch and freezer technique follwed by roxanne glue, then I start stitching.
I'm using batiks for the applique pieces and some kona white for the background, I want the colours to pop out at you when its up on the wall, its going to be quite big the patterns states is 24 x 48 but that's with hardly any room above or below the vase so I'm going make it slightly larger so there's room for some quilting.
I'm going to post this to lots of link ups during the week as I'm too slow on my projects to post more often!
I can't make the link up buttons behave themselves and they are all over the place, and Canoe ridge creations button won't play ball at all.

Saturday, 19 May 2012

I have a new toy, its a Wacom Bamboo Fun, Pen and Touch design tablet, I had it for my birthday last month.

I want to use it to draw out different quilting designs on photos of my quilts, I'm totally inspired by Carla Barrett, she is an awesome Quilt Whisperer and she has an interactive teaching course called Tablet Design for Quilters Class, where you can pay to learn all about designing and planing the quilting for your quilts using a design tablet, her website is called Feathered Fibers.

I'm still learning how to use it at the moment and don't have any photos to share but hopefully in a few months I will be clever enough to sign up for one of her classes!
I hope you have a lovely weekend.

Sunday, 13 May 2012

Its been ages again since I last posted, and its not the decorating this time that has kept me busy.

My youngest daughter Katie has been quite poorly, her eczema has flared up really badly and we have had numerous doctor and hospital visits, overnight hospital stays and endless sleepless nights over the last two months, the itching has driven her crazy!, She is now seeing a specialist and has started to improve thank fully and our fingers are crossed that it continues.

My sewing time has been nil for several weeks but I have managed to sew my New York Beauty top together, I'm hoping to take some pics to post soon and I have planned two new quilts.
I hope you are having a lovely weekend.